Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of creation:
O my soul, praise Him, for He is thy health and salvation:
Join the full throng:
Wake, harp and psalter and song,
Sound forth in glad adoration.
LH 442, Joachim Neander (1650-1680)
Tr. Catherine Winkworth, 1863, alt.

Throughout the Synodical Assembly, God’s Word and the reception of His good gifts in the Divine Service were celebrated with great joy. The Assembly worshipped at the start and close of every day. Throughout the services, there was a powerful sense of unity, from the clear and confident responses to the liturgy, the recitation of the Creed and the reverent reception of the Lord’s Supper at the beginning and close of the Assembly.

Opening Divine Service

The gathering began with a stirring rendition of the hymn ‘The Church’s One Foundation’, as our pastors processed into Good Shepherd Lutheran Church Hamilton. The sound of full-throated and -hearted singing resonated throughout the church, as the crucifer, Joshua Rentsch, led the processional, followed by our LM-A pastors in order of ordination from newest to longest serving.

The liturgy was led by Rev. David Wear, the pastor of Good Shepherd.

Rev. Dr Matt Anker, the President of LM-A, preached on 1 Peter 2:1-11. Noting that St Peter was writing to Christians in Asia Minor who were being actively persecuted for their beliefs, President Matt acknowledged that many present know what it is like to suffer for holding fast to the Word of God, as indeed Christians have suffered and continue to suffer in every time and place.

It is instructive to read Peter’s teaching to those who suffered much worse than any of us have experienced:

Right off the bat he instructs them to put away all malice – telling them to harbour no ill feeling toward those who have wronged them. Easier said than done, right? He tells them to put away deceit and hypocrisy – in other words don’t pretend like there’s no problem, but also don’t pretend like you aren’t part of the problem. You can just about hear them respond, “But aren’t we the victims here?” Put away all envy – don’t covet what you have had to leave behind. And put away slander – don’t speak ill of others but speak the truth in love and even be prepared to put the best construction on the actions of those who’ve wronged you.

This goes against the old Adam’s thirst for revenge and vindication. Turning the other cheek and repaying hatred with blessing is impossible for sinful human beings in their own strength. Instead,

Peter points us to who we are in Christ. He reminds us where our strength comes from and he invites us to rejoice in the incredible place we have as sons and daughters of the Heavenly King. Peter probably knows better than anyone that none of us have the strength within to be faithful, and so he points us outside ourselves where we can find peace and hope and strength to endure.
St Peter firstly calls us to long for the pure spiritual milk that is the Word of the Gospel. In a very real sense, none of us stop being newborn infants this side of eternity and so we need to constantly suckle at the bosom of God’s goodness and mercy. We need to drink deeply every single day, being reminded that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. This hunger for the Word is vital as we face not only our current struggles, but all that will bombard us in this life…
This feast of the Word – the pure spiritual milk – puts to death everything sinful and unclean in us and renews in us a right Spirit that we may face every kind of trial and tribulation with confidence in the completed work of Christ. Our ears are filled with this Word through the preaching of the church, where Jesus is at work feeding, nourishing, and sustaining you to live as His forgiven and forgiving people. You taste this Word made flesh in the body and blood of the sacrament, where you are being fed with Christ Himself that your sins would be forgiven and your faith strengthened for every trial and temptation. And as you daily remember your baptism, you bathe in this Word that washes you clean, and by the power of the Holy Spirit a new person rises to proclaim the excellencies of Him who called you out of darkness.

President Matt encouraged the congregation to reflect on what kind of church LM-A will become and prayed that we would be defined by our love and dedication to the Word, and that we would ‘gather with thanksgiving that in Christ we are part of God’s chosen race, His royal priesthood, His holy nation, a people for his own possession, that we may proclaim the excellencies of him who called us out of darkness into his marvellous light.’

Following the sermon, the congregation received the Lord’s Supper with thanksgiving, and the Synodical Assembly was officially opened in the name of the Triune God.

Our LM-A pastors after the Opening Divine Service. Reflecting on the installation service in November 2026 when there were two LM-A pastors, the processional at the opening service was a powerful reminder of how God has blessed LM-A with faithful shepherds.

Watch the Opening Service

Daily Worship

Throughout the Assembly, the days began and ended with worship. Pastor David Wear served as Chaplain for the Assembly and was the liturgist for the services. A different LM-A pastor preached at each of the daily services.

On Friday afternoon, the day finished with Vespers. Vice President Pastor Mathew Ker preached on 1 Peter 1:3-9, ‘Born Again to a Living Hope’, encouraging us to look forward to what God is doing, leaving the past behind.

Saturday morning began with Matins. Pastor Paul Hannola of Calvary Lutheran Mission Church Toowoomba preached on Hebrews 12:18 – 13:2, ‘Viewpoint to the Better Mountain’. Using imagery of hiking in the Australian landscape, Pastor Paul described the Book of Hebrews as ‘that lookout spot, that viewpoint, in God’s Word,’ which shows us ‘the grand vista where the Old Testament and the New Testament make sense together.’ From this viewpoint there are two mountains, one Mt Sinai, the mountain of the law which condemns, and the other Mt Zion, the mountain of the gospel, where heaven meets earth. In the Divine Service, ‘Christ brings us to the very throne and right hand of God. The grace-enveloped summit of Zion comes to us. In worship, we participate already now in the life of this supernatural city built by God.’ .

At the close of proceedings on Saturday, Pastor Wear led Saturday Evening Responsive Prayer. Newly elected Vice President, Pastor Matthias Prenzler of St Paul’s Lutheran Church Shepparton, preached on Ephesians 2:1-10, the ‘great text of the Reformation’, which lays out clearly the centrality of God’s grace: ‘For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast’ (Ephesians 1:8-9).
Summarising his sermon, Pastor Matthias concluded, ‘God has saved us from the condemnation of sin, by the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, and He invites us now to participate in his mission to the world so that others may receive the saving grace in which we now live!’

On Sunday morning, the Assembly celebrated Matins once more. The choir and cantor Enoch Fandrich led a wonderful version of Psalm 24, followed by the sermon proclaimed by Pastor Mark Hampel of Charleville Lutheran Mission, based on Colossians 3:1-17. Pastor Hampel examined each verse of the text and exhorted the congregation to put away the hurts of the past and earthly things and instead be filled with praise and thanksgiving for all that Christ has done for us.

During the morning service, Deaconess Kathleen Mills was installed as the Registrar of Lutheran Theological Seminary - Australia. Deaconess Kathleen will be responsible for managing enrolments and supporting students during their studies, as well as teaching deaconess-specific courses. As part of her installation, Kathleen was presented with a pin signifying her role as the only active service deaconess in LM-A at present.

Sounds of glad adoration

Throughout the Synodical Assembly, the music was incredibly beautiful. Two talented young Australian organists, Enoch Fandrich and Joshua Walker, along with LCMS Deaconess Sandra Rhein, served us by playing the organ beautifully. Enoch also served as cantor in a number of services. We were truly blessed by a wonderful choir formed of people from across LM-A, as well as two bands from Good Shepherd Hamilton, who played during communion distribution at the Opening and Closing Divine Services.

In Memoriam

At the close of the business sessions on Sunday, an In Memoriam rite was held to honour Rev. Peter Koehne, who was called to glory on 25 December 2025. We give thanks to God for the faithful confession and service of Pastor Koehne.

Closing Divine Service

The Closing Divine Service was a truly historic moment in the life of LM-A. Following the previous day’s signing of fellowship between LM-A and both the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod (LCMS) and Lutheran Church Canada (LCC), the opening processional included all three presidents: Rev. Dr. Matthew C. Harrison of the LCMS, Rev. David Haberstock of LCC and our own President, Rev. Matt Anker.

President Anker and Pastor David Wear were the liturgists. President Haberstock read the Old Testament lesson from Jeremiah 15:15-21, President Harrison read the Epistle Reading from Romans 12:9-21. President Anker read the Gospel according to St Matthew, chapter 16:21-28.

*President of the LCMS, Rev. Dr. Matthew C. Harrison.*

The congregation were then privileged to hear President Harrison preach. Before beginning his sermon, President Harrison brought ‘warm greetings of fellowship in the gospel from the 1000 delegates who voted this summer at the Missouri Synod Convention for church fellowship, and all the congregations, 5800 of them, all the pastors rejoicing, that you and we are in fellowship as one.’

President Harrison noted that he had followed our travails over many years since he studied at Luther Seminary in 1987-1988. He said that over the last couple of years he has

‘seen something new emerging that God has wrought, marked at first by great pain and sorrow and burdened consciences. And then I see this week, the new era breaking forth; joy. Joy! “O give thanks unto the Lord for He is good, for His mercy endureth forever.” Who would have thought, these recusants, this group, these LM-Aers, would be marked more than else with joy? That’s marvellous!’

He encouraged the congregation to reflect on how God brings good things forth - through suffering. Just as it was necessary for Christ to endure suffering and death to bring about the redemption of all mankind, we too might suffer in this world, but ‘I tell you, you are justified! There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus!’ God allows suffering in life as a stripping away of everything we might rely on in life until finally we cling only to Him. ‘Take up your cross and follow Me. That’s the mission in LM-A. Take up your cross. Speak of that cross and that forgiveness. Speak it to your neighbours, to each other, to your loved ones - speak!’

Following the sermon, President Anker installed our new Vice President, Pastor Matthias Prenzler, and then all members of newly appointed committees and boards of LM-A.